Finding Grace
by BelieveInFairies
Summary: Will and OC. Romance, come on and read, you know you want to.
1. Prologue: Empty

_**Finding Grace**_

By: **BelieveInFaeries**

**Prologue: _Empty_**

The sun's rays were finally beginning to peak over the horizon, through the streets and buildings and the only noises that could be heard were the faint sounds of the few people staggering their way into the boarding rooms and barmaids and owner's closing and locking their doors. The street itself was littered with bottles, barrels, and other random things that had fallen, been thrown, kicked or rolled to their current position. They had gone untouched since the night before; forgotten until desired.

It was morning in Tortuga.

The air was salty and the wind seemed to sweep away much of the stench that had accumulated the previous night. As the bright rays of morning illuminated the now sleeping town, it gave the illusion that the town had been deserted. And if not for the evidence still lingering along the streets from the previous night's escapades, it would've appeared to be true.

All the patrons of Tortuga had finally passed out from their drinking stupors and the town was now silent save for the slight ocean sounds emitting from the docks. It was a good time to rest for even said docks were deserted today. No one dared set sail on Friday, bad luck. And sailor's, though daring as they were, were still superstitous and dared not tempt fate.

It was quiet though not eerily so; just enough noise to be comforting. It was perfect for sleeping, and yet, on the second story above a tavern in the inn with a weathered wooden sign reading 'Sailor's Delight' in fading gold lettering, a lone figure stood staring out the window. The figure was seemingly looking out towards the ocean, looking, but not seeing.

William Turner sighed as he looked out the dusty window. If anyone had informed him he would come back here, he would have thought them mad and laughed. A year ago last week he had made himself a promise that he wouldn't ever have to see this place again. He had said he wouldn't have to look upon the worn, unruly streets or patrons.. He wouldn't set foot on the soil that had ingested more than it's share of alcohol and God only knows what else. And worse would never have to smell the 'superfilous bouquet known as Tortuga' ever again.

And if his life had turned out the way he'd planned, he would have been able to keep that promise.

He was supposed to be with his wife. Perhaps just waking from a night of lying beside her. He had played the image in his mind for years; He would gently brush away the unruly curl that had fallen on her cheek the night before. A small smile would find his face as he watched her blissfully in slumber and he would wonder if it were he she were dreaming of. He would gently press his lips to her forehead in a silent kiss and be contented that life had finally dealt him a winning hand. He would pray and thank the Lord above that he had her.

He should have been lying with his arms around his wife, lazily tracing patterns over her skin, wonderfully content and finally happy. But instead, our dear William was looking out on an empty Tortuga at the early dawn.

Looking but not seeing, lost in a memory that never happened.


	2. Chapter One: Grace

_**Finding Grace**_

By:** BelieveInFaeries**

**Chapter One: _Grace_**

_One Month Later, St. Croix Port_

Grace O'Conner craned her neck around the side of the building looking for any sign of life coming her way. Her skirt made a slight rustling sound and she cursed inwardly. How could women wear these torture chambers they called 'dresses' all day long she had no clue. She could barely stand them when circumstances called for it.

It would not be so bad if it were just the thin material outer dress that one must wear but it was not only that but all of the under garmets that went with it that irritated and aggervated Grace. Pantaloons, slips, corsettes, it was all frustrating especially if one tried to put them on themselves, like she had to do. It had taken her a bit of time as well to do so, and that hadn't made the situation any better. She had been late for the gathering that the Smith's were throwing and her party had almost left her because of it. One was just simply not late for something this important. But somehow, she'd managed it.

But even with all of the stress and aggervation she had endured throughout this night, that was still not quite over, she had to admit that seeing herself in the looking glass in her room had brightened her mood somewhat. It was not everyday she dressed in the finest silk and pulled her hair up with tendrils cascading downwards. Her auburn hair had highlights courtesy of the Carribean sun and she was confident that it looked it's best tonight and not it's usual stringy mess that she just tied back with a leather band.

Yes, Misses Grace O'Conner was looking every bit the part that she had to play tonight.

And she had played the part. Extremely well, she would tell you if you asked. She had acted accordingly, speaking only when spoken to so as not to draw to much attention to herself but not acting suspicious either. She was aloof this night and no one at the party seemed to notice her much. And that's how she liked it.

She looked back towards the dimly lit street again and almost screamed in frustration as she saw no one was coming. Where were her companions? They had all agreed to meet here by the Smithy Shoppe after attending the party. And now she was the only soul around, save for a few mice that had come by earlier.

A late drop of rainwater fell onto the skirt of her dress and she wiped it off subconciously. She contimplated leaving without her companions when the moon moved behind an unseen cloud throwing the earth below in to near pitch black. Should she stay and wait for her companions or someone else to find her? Or should she go and make her way back by herself?

It only took a two minutes for her to decide.

She took a deep breath before stepping out from behind the wall of the smithy and headed towards the docks. She tried to minimize the sound of her heeled shoe by not alowing the heel to make contact with the stone street. The front of her shoes betrayed her and clicked none the less as she quickly made her way downwards.

Grace could now hear the rythmatic sound of trained footsteps behind her and she increased her speed. She had just a three more corners to go and she'd be home free, so to speak. She rounded the first trying to keep her breathing somewhat steady and resisted the urge to break into a run. The second came around and she threw cation into the wind, letting her heels click as she sped a little more, not caring if they heard her or not.

Coming upon the third and last one she felt a calmer emotion overtaking her knowing that within a few more steps she would be out of harm's way all together. The emotion soon lead to fear as she rounded to corner and slammed into some kind of wall. She looked at it more closely in the dark and realized as two arms came to steady her, it was no wall at all.

However she did not have time to see her captors face as he quickly ushered her into the nearby alley. With fear rising her in throat in the form of a scream she was pressed against the wall. She bit back her scream but a small squeak managed to escape her lips. So her capture's hand came to rest upon her mouth silencing anything else that might try to come forth.

With mind fully comprehending the danger she had placed herself in, she could feel her body go into a panic. She swallowed hard and tried to asses the situation as best she could from her stand point. She moved her foot inwards slightly so that she could use it to knee her assailent and run for the docks again.

She had nearly accomplished this when a whispered voice stopped her, "My apologies, Miss. I will release you soon, please do not scream." he removed his hand from her mouth as his whisper reached her ears. His voice was hurried and she could barely understand it but she did feel his tense body pressed up to hers and she knew that he meant her no harm. Well, not at this moment, he didn't.

The footsteps drew nearer and nearer and she realized that they were now coming from both directions. She heard her captor suck in a breath and followed suit as to groups of naval officers met just to the left of the alley. They were close enough to hear their voices.

"He is not down this way, Sir."

"Nor, this way." another voice responded, sounding more irritated than the first. "We shall look on the other side of town, perhaps he is trying to throw us off."

"Yes Sir." the first voice agreed and Grace soon heard the footsteps fading into the distance.

The moon was back and lit the alley with a glow that allowed Grace to get a good look at her captor. He was lithely built but had muscles that suggested he knew what work was. She looked up towards his face and found dark eyes staring back at her.

"My apologies again, Miss. I did not mean to frighten you." he said in a hushed tone, though he did not step away from her.

"You are running from the navy?" she questioned just as quietly though suspicously, looking towards him with a raised eyebrow.

"I fear that they do not take kindly to persons in my profession." he replied.

"Your profession?" she questioned him again. What was he? A thief? A pick pocket?

He nodded slightly, "I'm afraid I canno-"

"Here he is Sir!" a new voice had both Grace and the young man whipping their heads towards the alley opening. More soilders appeared behind the first and Grace tensed knowing what was to come next.

She was soon thrown back into unawareness as the young man pulled her in front of him and held a knife to her throat. Her eyes widened as she felt the blade against her vocal chords. She did not struggle for fear that his hand would slip and cut her.

"Hold fire men!" an authoritive voice comanded as the Captain forced his way through the crowd of soilders.

"Stay back!" the young man ordered in a voice that spoke of warning. He slowly stepped forwards toward the right side of the alley where the soilders had left a consideribly large escape route for him to take. And it seemed as if he were planning on taking Grace with him.

"There is no need to come to this, Pirate." the Captain spat out the name like it left a bad taste in his mouth.

Pirate? Grace was being held at knife point by a pirate? She immediatly wanted to scream in frustration again.

"Let her go and we won't shoot you." the Captain finished.

They'll just hang you noon tomorrow, Grace thought sardonically.

"Stay back and she won't die." the pirate retorted still moving himself and Grace slowly towards the only availible exit. As soon as he was close enough he threw the knife towards the crowd of soilders distracting them as he pulled Grace along his get-away route.

Grace found herself running behind the young man who still had quite a grip upon her arm and she silently cursed the shoes she wore as she felt them rubbing blisters onto her heels and toes. They ran until they had come upon the docks and a small row boat resting in the water bobbing with the waves as it did so. He hurried her inside it and began rowing as fast as humanly possible as the navy made their way onto the docks.

The moon seemed on their side as it decided it too would make a fast get away behind a cloud, purging them into darkness once more.

Grace did not utter a word for fear the the naval officers would change their minds and fire into the darkness. And while she needed to get off of her feet and out of these shoes, she didn't feel getting shot to death would be the correct solution. So she sat quietly as the young man rowed the tiny vessel towards the open sea.

She wanted to inform him of what might happen but wasn't sure was what worse, being shot, or being out in the middle of the ocean in a row boat. She decided maybe he knew what he was doing and gave him the benifit of the doubt, keeping her mouth shut and allowing him to row wherever he was rowing to. She soon found out her instinct was correct as faint lights came into veiw.

Grace looked towards them and realized her kidnapper had rowed them to a ship. And not just any ship, she realized as she was taken aboard and examined the crew and captain. Grace O'Conner had been taken captive on the one and only Black Pearl.


	3. Chapter Two: My Boots Will Not Fit You

_**Finding Grace**_

**By: BelieveInFaeries**

**Chapter Two: '_My Boots Will Not Fit You'?_**

William Turner had done a lot of things in his life.

He had sailed from England to the Carribean when he was just nine years of age to find his father when his mother had died. He had defyed the odds that were against him when he'd gotten pneumonia at the tender age of eleven and lived through it. He had gone on a wild, insane adeventure with a pirate captain after the woman he loved when she was captured by pirates a year ago, and won her back.

And yet, he had no idea what had posessed him to take this young, most likely now, frightened woman onto the most feared ship in the Carribean.

He dreaded what the crew would say, especially Mr. Gibbs. He didn't much care for women company aboard any ship. Although, Mr. Gibbs _was _extremely supersticious. The infamous Captain Jack Sparrow would no doubt believe Will had done so as a gift to him. And Will rolled his eyes inwardly at the thought.

He chanced a small glance at the young female beside him. She looked more awed than frightened. Perhaps the fear had yet to set in. Or perhaps, she did not show fear well. Either way he was sure she would start into hysterics quite soon.

His small glance turned into a stare as he watched her look around at everyone on deck. She took it all in and her green eyes grew larger as her gaze settled in on another crew member. "Captain Jack Sparrow." he heard her whisper and looked towards the starboard side of the ship.

Captain Jack was only a few feet away and coming towards them curious as to why Will had brought along a woman. Not that he minded too terribly. He stopped just before them and took a long look at her. She had beautiful auburn hair that was coiled up in a delicate, feminine style, though a few wisps had escaped on her little adventure and now framed an oval face. The Captian then let his eyes roam over her body allowing himself to wonder of all the little secrets hiding underneath all of the layers of silk and satin.

When he had his fill he trailed slowly back up to her face to meet big green eyes watching him. He smiled a toothy grin to Will, "Have you brought me a present, young William?"

This time Will really did let his eyes roll. Jack would never change. "No." he stated with a curt nod, "We were being chased by the Navy, and-"

"You're Captain Jack Sparrow." the girl interrupted still staring wide-eyed at Jack.

"Yes, luv, I am." Jack smiled widely liking this new feeling of celebrity. "And who might you be?" he asked stepping towards her with interest.

"Me?" Grace fumbled a squeak, "Oh, I'm Grace O'Conner." she smiled,curtseying slightly for him.

"I'm pleased to meet you Miss Grace." Jack poured on the charm elicting a small blush from Grace.

Will watched as this young woman fell right into Jack's charms and wondered what had happened to the frightened expression's he'd thought he'd find on her face. She showed nothing of the sort, in fact she was more excited and happy than anything close to frightened. He was so intent on watching her with his curiousity that he did not hear Jack when he spoke.

"WILLIAM!" Jack all but struck the young man. When Will turned to face his Captain, a slight blush painted on his cheeks from the embarassment of being lost in his thoughts, Jack continued, "Were my ears right in hearin' that the Royal Navy was on your boot heels, boy?"

"Aye." Will nodded and waited for orders, not looking at Grace for fear that he would be prone to staring again.

"Well, then," Jack turned to the crew, "Get moving you scabberous dogs! Weigh anchor! Set sail!"

"Weigh anchor! Set the sails!" Mr. Gibbs parroted Jacks orders, though none aboard needed to be told again. He turned towards the lankier man, "Where to, Captain?"

"Hmm." Jack pondered a moment taking the time to stroke his beard thoughtfully. "Tortuga, I think." he stated and made his way to the helm.

"Captain, what about the, uh," Gibbs nodded his head towards Grace, "The girl. What'll we do with her?"

Jack looked over towards Grace as she stepped forward, "I don't know yet, Gibbs. What'll we do with you, luv?" he asked.

Grace swallowed a small amount of fear as she boldly stepped towards the Captain, "Might I ask you a question, Captain Sparrow?"

"That depends on what kind of question it is, luv." Jack said as he turned to the helm once more and began guiding the Pearl out of danger.

Grace walked up the steps to stand beside him. "Did you really ransack Nassau Port without even firing off a single shot?" she asked with wide eyes full of wonder and curiousity.

Jack's grin stretched wide upon his face, "Aye, luv, I did. Would you like to hear about it?" he grinned towards her, already knowing the answer by the look upon her face.

"Oh yes." Grace nodded quickly, "Please." she added with a smile as she stepped closer to the charming captian.

Will watched from his duties as Jack talked to Grace up until the wee hours of morning. He rolled his eyes as he caught small snipets of the conversation. It was mostly Jack speaking about his many adventures, and of course, since it was Captain Jack Sparrow telling the tales they were all in his favor. The only thing from Grace that he heard were noises of excitment or wonder depending on what part he was at.

He wondered why this girl was not afraid of the pirate Captain or the crew. Elizabeth, he remembered she'd said, wasn't too afraid of Jack when they'd met, until that is, he took her hostage. This young woman seemed to be from some sort of noble family and Will feared this might cause a large ripple in the smooth waters they'd been having as of late. What with the Commodore settling down with marriage, they hadn't had to much trouble out of him.

Of course Will wouldn't have wanted to leave his wife to journey at sea either. That is, if he had one.

That still left a bitter taste in the young man's mouth. He would try and tell himself that he and Elizabeth weren't meant to be that there were other fish in the ocean and all sorts of other uplifting metephorical phrases but they never seemed to work where Elizabeth was concerned. The cold hard facts were what kept him alone at night and curt during his days.

The facts were simply; she did want to marry, just not him. He was a blacksmith and she was a governor's daughter; their stations would not allow them to stay together. He could not give her all that she wanted in the matter of material goods.

William kept telling himself all of this but still his heart was broken. True, he could not give her material goods, and their classes were different but he could love her. And he did. He still did, after all this time and all she put him through, God help him, he loved her.

Will snapped out of his Elizabeth inspired daze and jumped back into work helping some of the crew raise a freshly mended sail. There was no need in reminesing over something that hadn't happened, he scolded himself, it would only make it worse.

"Young Mister Turner!" he heard Jack yell from the helm.

"Aye." Will said as he approached, glancing momentarily at the young woman. She was still awed by Jack it seemed.

"Take young Miss O'Conner down to the galley and fetch her something to eat." Jack said while steadying his gaze back into the inky blackness of the water.

"It's quite alright, Captain, I have already had my supper." Grace spoke up in a polite tone. "You have no need to babysit me, Mister Turner." she told Will with a slight smile.

"Well, Will, escort Miss O'Conner to a vacant room so she can sleep." Jack decided with a nod. "And if ya need anythin' a'tall Miss O'Conner, my room is just below this helm." he said with a warm smile towards her.

Grace was about to protest again, wanting to hear more of Jack's tales but a yawn interrupted her. She blinked afterward trying to chase the sleep from her body but to no avail, she was tired.

Will did his job, making sure she had a door with a lock so that the crew would leave her be. "I'm just across from you, if you need anything." he told her but his tone was not as gentle nor as inviting as Jack's had been.

"Thank you, Mister Turner." she smiled slightly back at him. He turned to leave her in the doorway but she stopped him, "Mister Turner?"

He turned towards her, "Yes?"

She seemed to think for a moment before asking, "Do you have any extra trousers I could borrow? For tomorrow, I mean. I should hate to dirty my dress." she said quickly.

His look turned from confusion to interest, a noble woman wanting to wear a man's trousers? He debated on telling her no and getting back to his work, but he did offer his services to her and the guilt of lying to her would soon catch up with him.

So it was that without a word he went into his own quarters and returned out with not only a pair of trouser's but a shirt as well. The trousers would be no good without it, then the crew would just have an excuse not to work. Although as Will looked at her he couldn't help but conjure the image of just the trousers resting upon her hips and nothing else.

When he emerged from his room she was right where he'd left her, just inside her doorway. She smiled when she saw the things he carried. "Thank you, Mister Turner, I appreciate this more than you know."

Her smile was warm and Will felt a slight stir of something in his stomach. And for the first time that night, he looked at her. Really looked at her. She was pretty. An understatement, he decided as he assesed her again, she would have been just pretty of not for those eyes. Those eyes were what made her beautiful.

At first glance, they were green, but if one took the time to really look into them there was more than just green. A muted but noticable yellow outlined the center black and blended in to make the beautiful lush green which in turn was outlined by an almost dark blue color.

Will decided he could spend hours just looking into these eyes. Beautiful, colorful eyes. Eyes that were not brown like Elizabeth's had been. Eyes that were currently settled below eyebrows arched with a curious interest at him.

He had to say something now. She was looking at him in question. The right thing to say would be to apologize for staring at her. But what Will thought to say and what Will did say were completely different.

"My boots will not fit you." he said snapping himself out of his thoughts and simultaneously shoving the garments at her. He then turned and left her standing with the clothes just inside her cabin door.


	4. Chapter Three: The Truth About Grace

**_Finding Grace_**

By: **BelieveInFaeries**

**Chapter Three: _The Truth About Grace_**

Grace stood staring at the empty hallway long after Will had gone. She wondered why he was so short with her. She had thought him nice. Well, nice enough for a kidnapper she supposed. He could have killed her, or worse. But he hadn't. And while in the alley he had pulled a knife to her throat, he was no where near harming her and only used her to get away.

If the roles were reversed,she might have done the same thing. Perhaps all of his curtness was just because he obviously had a rough day. So she brushed off his rudeness to him being tired and turned to look at her lodgings.

A stiff backed wooden chair, a small cabinet and a even smaller round table was what met her eyes. All of which being nailed to thesomewhat stainedfloor, except the chair wich shepropped against the doorfor extra protection in case one of Captian Sparrow's crew wasn't as nice as he had been. Not that the chair would prove much good against a rather large and determined pirate, but it would give her some warning.

She placed the clothes that Will had lent her on the chair and turned to the cabinet. She opened it finding a open knit hammock folded haphazardly inside. She smiled as she pulled it out. How long had it been since she had slept in one of these? Too long, she decided when she couldn't remember.

She began setting up her bed and allowed her mind to drift of what her crew might be doing at the same moment. Probably being scolded, or worse, by Uncle Frederick. He had to be livid to find out that his little niece had been left behind. He, most likely, had the entire crew scouring St. Croix Port this very instant looking for her.

It was no matter though. She knew the plan. She would barter passage out of Tortuga and meet up with them soon. But for now it was nice to be a passenger and not a working hand on a ship. Especially one as notorious as the Black Pearl.

She'd heard the tales of the Pearl for as long as she could remember. And through those had become acquainted with Captain Jack's tales as well. Those were her favorites. The wild and, more often than not, drunk Jack and his escipades were enough to keep her enthralled with many a sea-man willing to tell her about him.

She was sure when she had been hearing them straight from the horse's mouth, so to speak, that the Captain had thought her a simpering, giggling, young fool of a woman that couldn't hold onto a thought longer than a flea. She hopedthat he might think her shy,but most likely he thought that she was daft. After all, he'd only seen her giggle and nod through his entire tellings. She must have looked a fool.

She sighed as she pushed on her hammock to make sure it could withstand her weight. Satisfied, she took of her shoes with agroan of pain and pleasure. She glared at the torturous slippers before finally stopping delaying the inevitable and looking down at her feet. She winced as she counted four blisters on her toes alone and couldn't bare to look at her heels knowing there were at least two more large ones waiting for her. Why hadn't she broken in those insanely uncomfortable slippers before wearing them all night?

Grace gave another sigh of pure relief as she slid out of her gown and undid all the latching and straps of the constricting undergarments, including the dreaded corsette, which, she was sure, was designed by the devil himself and purely evil. She hadn't understood the need to wear one anyway, it wasn't as if her physique was round or at all pudgy in any way. She wasn't afforded the comfort of sitting around tea and biscuits to gossip about who was doing what, or who for that matter.

She was a working woman. A good one, for that matter. She knew every inch of the ship she sailed on from the galley to the crow's nest. She had learned every job she was allowed to, and some that she wasn't allowed. She might not be able to arrange a grand party or run a massive estate, but she could steer a large ship and make a meal for over two hunderd when the occasion called for it. She had callouses, for goodness sakes! And Uncle Frederick and the crew all loved her, in their own unconventional way.

She slid into the shirt that Will had loaned her with a sigh. She feel back into the hammock and smiled when it rocked with the gentle sway of the ship. She picked up the piece of jewelry that hung from her neck and examined it.

It was a rather large ruby surrounded by pure, polished gold on a chain. Ingravings of a language she'd never seen lay embedded on the outer edge. She wondered what they said, but knew they had to be of great importance for her to have risked her life and that of the crew's to get it. She had done a wonderful job, as well, if she did say so herself.

A yawn escaped her lips as she let the medalion fall onto her chest and stretched out in the swinging hammock. She still couldn't figure out why Will was so short with her. It shouldn't bug her, she knew, but something about his tone and manner had irked her.

She hadn't been rude to him, had she? She may just be a working woman, but she was taught manners and used them frequently. She had been exceptionally nice since boarding the ship, she thought. But maybe Mister Turner hadn't. Maybe he was offended by something she had said or done since meeting him. She hoped not.

Oh, but why should she care if he liked her or not? She wouldn't be near him to much longer. And after that she might not see him ever again. That thought struck her suddenly and she popped her eyes open. What if she didn't see him ever again? Not that she knew him, or even knew if she liked him, but he was rather nice to her. And she had seen the way he had stared at her.

Truthfully, she didn't mind all that much. It was nice to be noticed as a woman sometimes. And he hadn't tried to force himself upon her so she knew he had some manners. And he was rather handsome.

Grace let out a groan at that thought. She hadn't been attracted to someone in so long she had forgotten what it felt like. And she would pick the one person would obviously didn't care if she was thrown overboard or not.

She blew out a deep breath and rolled her eyes at herself. She would never be able to get to sleep if she didn't stop thinking about him now. So with much more than a little effort she cleared her mind of all things Will and allowed the ocean lapping against the hull of the boat to become her lullibye. With a yawn and small stretch she fell fast asleep.


End file.
